Adjustable water-cooled door for smelters



Aug. 20, 1957 E. l.. YERGER ADJUSTABLE wATER-cooLED DooaFoRsMELTERs Filed May 4, 1955 5 sheets4sheet 1 ./nJ/E'r/DF i wooo yenes/Ee E. L YERGER j ADJUSTABLE WATER-COOLED DOOR FOR SMELTERS Filed MWA, 1955 Aug. zo, 1957 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 TZVEm/DF Aug, 20, 1.957 E. L YERGl-:R

ADJUSTABLE wATER-cooLED nooR FOR sMELTERs 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed May 4, 1955 United States Patent ADJUSTABLE WATER-COOLED DOOR FOR SMELTERS Elmwood L. Yer-ger, Oak Park, Ill., assignor to The lEagle- Picher Company, Cincinnati, Ohio, a corporation of Ohio Application May 4, 1955, Serial No. 505,943

1 Claim. (Cl. 49-55) This invention relates to an adjustable water-cooled door for smelters, and more particularly to a water-cooled door section that is adjustable as to its height for the purpose of controlling the depth'of the pool of molten frit in a frit smelter prior to discharge of the molten frit from the smelter.

-It has heretofore been customary in the construction and use of smelters to provide a fixed discharge spout or opening from the interior of the smelter, which opening was at such a level, either at or above the iloor of the smelter, as to cause a pool of the molten frit to form of a depth predetermined by the height of the opening. Such an arrangement has not been entirely satisfactory, since with different compositions of frit, dilerent times and temperatures of smelting are required and, therefore, varying depths of the molten frit should be maintained on the smelter iloor or hearth. Also, it is important that the depth of the pool of molten frit be capable of control in order to make certain types of frit that require such control, and to minimize iluctuations in color and other qualities and characteristics of the product. Furthermore, with a stationary opening, great diiiiculty has heretofore been experienced from plugging up of the opening, requiring a great deal of very arduous and time-consuming labor to unplug it.

In accordance with my present invention, I provide a water-cooled frame delining a fixed opening in one of the vertical walls of the smelter, and then provide in combination with this frame a water-cooled door section and means for vertically adjusting the door section relative to the fixed opening of the frame so as to control the effective level of said opening relative to the iloor of the smelter. The water-cooled door section carries an opening and a discharge spout associated therewith, and this opening can either be brought into registry'with the wall opening for ease of draining and cleaning the smelter or at any adjusted level above the bottom of said wall opening. Clamping means are provided for holding the door section securely in adjusted position against the watercooled frame.

One of the advantages of using a coolant for the frame and door section is that these can be made of metal, without any refractory coating or lining, and yet will not be deleteriously affected by the molten frit material, nor will the molten material adhere to the metal surfaces objectionably. Such congealing of the molten frit as occurs in its passage through the opening defined by the frame and out through the discharge opening and spout serves merely to increase the viscosity of the molten material so that it will not flow through any cracks, crevices or apertures at the junction between the frame and the door section.

It is therefore an important object of this invention to provide an adjustable, coolant-cooled door section for use with a smelter to control the effective height of the discharge opening and therefore to enable the depth of the pool of molten material on the floor or hearth of 2 L the smelter to be easily controlled to that depth which is optimum for the particular type or composition-of frit being smelted..

It is a further important object of this invention to provide a novel and improved arrangement of coolantcooled frame and door section, together with means for adjusting the same relative to each other to control the effective height of the discharge opening and thereby facilitate the smelting operation by minimizing iiuctuations in composition,`co1or, opacity, hardness, workability and other qualities and characteristics of the material undergoing smelting.

It is a further important object of this invention to provide an arrangement of a water-cooled frame in com oor or hearth of the smelter and, in some cases, increase the productive capacity of the smelter.

Other and further important objects of this inventionl will be apparent from the disclosures in the specification' and the accompanying drawings.

On the drawings:

Figure l is a side elevational view, broken to indicate indefinite length, of a smelter having installed thereon a water-cooled frame and door structure embodying the principles of my invention.

Figure 2 is an enlarged elevational view of the watercooled frame and door section structure shown in Figure l.

Figure 3 is a further enlarged sectional view taken substantially along the line III-III of Figure 2.

Figure 4 is a perspective view of the water-cooled frame by itself; and

Figure 5 is a sectional view taken substantially along the broken line V-V of Figure 2, with parts broken away and in section.

vAs shown on the drawings:

The reference numeral 10 indicates generally a smelter of the type that is used for the smelting of frit, such as porcelain enamel frit and other vitreous, or glass-like materials. The smelter 10 comprises vertical side walls, of which the wall 11 only is shown, and an upper wall that may be in the form of an arched wall 12 (Fig. 5) for a portion of its length. Material to be smelted is fed from a hopper 13, or a plurality of hoppers, by means of one or more screw conveyors (not shown) into the smelter 10. The smelter may be either gasor oil-fired (not shown) with burners positioned and ports for primary and secondary air all arranged in a manner well known to those skilled in this art.

The novel structure of the present invention is indicated generally by the reference numeral 15 and is positioned at the discharge end and attached to the vertical side wall 11, or supported therefrom. Said structure 15 includes a structural framework extending from a oor line 16 to a point above the top surface of the side wall 11 and comprising pairs of channel beams 16 and 17 arranged vertically in spaced apart relationship and with the flanges of said channels extending in opposite directions and with the web portions rigidly connected by means of spacers 18 and 19 welded to said respective web portions. Plates 20 and 21 are positioned against the front webs of the respective channel beams 16, 16 and 17, 17, and tie bars 22 and 23 extend from said plates 20 and 21 to the other side of the smelter, where they are similarly secured (not shown) in order to reinforce the upper ends of said channel beams. A nut 24 on the front end of each of the tie bars 22 is threaded home against the corresponding plate 20, with a similar arrangement at the rear side of the smelter. Also, other pairs of channel.

beams, indicated at 25, 26 and 27, are arranged along the front side of the smelter at spaced intervals, with corresponding pairs of channel beams positioned against the rear side wall of the smelter and tied thereto by transverse bars similar to the bar 22, for the purpose of further strengthening and rigidifying the smelter structure.

The front side wall 11 of the smelter is provided with an opening 28, defined by a lower surface 28a that is planar and extends at right angles to the vertical surfaces of the side wall 11, and by an upper planar surface 28b that slopes upwardly and forwardly. These lower and upper walls are joined by vertical surfaces extending the full width of the side wall 11. Within the opening 28 so provided is fitted and secured a U-shaped, water-cooled frame 30, separately illustrated in Figure 4 and cornprising an outer bottom wall 31, outer side walls 32 and 33 at right angles thereto, and sloping top walls 34 and 35, all properly dimensioned for insertion in said opening 28 to lie iiush with the back surface 39 of said side walls but to project, as at 40 from the front surface 41 of said side walls. The U-shaped forward wall 42 of said frame 30 lies in a` single, generally vertical plane for a purpose that will later appear. An inner U-shaped wall .44 completes the structure of the frame 30 and provides with the other walls a hollow interior 45, into which water or other coolant is admitted through a connection 46 for free discharge through downwardly turned nipples 47. The discharge water finds its way into a pit or sluiceway 48 provided in the ooring 16. The opening 28 in the front side wall 11 and the water-cooled frame 30 are so positioned, arranged and constructed that the rear lower wall portion 49 abuts against a forward end 50 of the hearth, or floor, 51 of the smelter and the upper surface 52 of the inner frame wall 44 lies substantially at, or slightly below7 the level of the upper surface 53 of said hearth 51.

A door section DS is mounted for vertical movement between the sets 16 and 17 of channel beams, the inner confronting web surfaces 55 and 56 of which provide guiding surfaces for said door section DS. Said door section includes vertical side members 57 and 58, which are of rectangular U-shape in cross section with the bight of the U opposed to the respective web surfaces 55 and 56 and provided with metal blocks 59 and 60 that are secured to said side members 57 and 58 and that are in sliding Contact with said web surfaces 55 and 56, respectively. As is obvious, the blocks 59 and 60 may be secured either to the vertical side members 57 and 58, or to the inner surfaces 55 and 56 of the channel members 16 and 17, with a corresponding change in the sets of surfaces between which sliding movement is permitted. A plurality of such blocks 59 and 60 are arranged in vertically spaced relationship to insure proper guiding movement.

The vertical side frame members 57 and 58 of the door section DS are joined at their tops by an I-bearn 61, secured at its ends to said side frame members. An upper frame, indicated generally by the reference numeral 62 is mounted above the sets of channel beams 16 and 17 for the purpose of providing a supporting structure for a dependent lifting mechanism, indicated generally at 63 and preferably comprising a mechanical jack, although hydraulic or other suitable means may be substituted therefor. Said upper frame structure 62 comprises a pair of uprights 64 and 65 secured to base plates 66 and 67, respectively, which, in turn, are suitably attached to the upper ends of said sets of channel beams 16 and 17. The upper ends of said uprights 64 and 65 support a cross member 68, which may suitably be a structural I-beam. An internally threaded socket plate 69 is secured to the under side of said I-beam 68 for receiving a threaded jack shaft '70, the lower end of which is threaded into a similar socket plate 71. Said socket plate 71 is mounted upon the top of a centered upright 72 attached at its lower end to the cross member 61. A handle 73 xedly secured to the jack shaft between its oppositely threaded end portions serves to operate the jack. While the jack is illustrated as being manually operated, it can, of course, be operated by hydraulic or other means. The extent to which the door section DS needs to be raised or lowered will depend upon the particular smelting operation being conducted, such as puddling, fining or pooling. Frequently, the door section will be raised to bring the opening therein to a height of 8 inches or so above the iioor level.

Pthe door section includes a door proper indicated generally by reference numeral 75, which is of metal and hollow, similar to the U-shaped frame 30. While it is generally preferable to omit any refractory lining from the door section and the previously described frame 30, such a lining may be used, if desired. The door 75 is of generally rectangular shape and suitably secured to the side frame members 57 and 58 for movement as a part of the door section DS. The door includes plane front and back walls 76 and 77, a lower wall 78, and an upper wall '79 that defines a downwardly extending central opening Sti for the discharge of molten frit owing from the loor 51 over the inside bottom wall 52 of the frame 30. A connection 81 in the lower wall 78 of the door 75 serves for the introduction of a coolant, such as water into the interior 82 of said door to maintain the same in cool condition during operation. The coolant overflows through downwardly turned nipples 83 projecting from the upper wall 79 near the highest points thereof. The rear surface of the back wall 77 of the door 75 normally lies against the outer plane surface 42 of the U-shaped frame 3), between which sliding movement is possible during the raising and lowering of the door section DS.

A discharge spout 85 is carried by the door 75, to which it is suitably attached by plates and bolts 86 in aligned position with respect to the discharge opening 80. Said discharge spout 85 is of generally frusto-conical form to provide a downwardly sloping arcuate surface 87 over which the molten frit flows into a water-sluiced, swivelly mounted spout 88. Said spout 88 includes a bowl 89 having a central opening 90, through which water is introduced from a pipe 91 for sluicing the spout 88. The bowl 89 is swivelly mounted with respect to the member 92 in which it is mounted and which serves to support it from the lower end of the door. The mounting 92 is attached to the front wall 76 of said door by means of a bracket 93. The spout 88 is a sectional elongated metal tube, jointed as at 94. Owing to the swivel mounting just described, the spout 88 can be swung to the desired angular position for discharge of the molten frit and sluice water into any of a plurality of pits, troughs or the like for carrying the frit away, or, by removal of spout S8, bowl 89, pipe 91 and mounting 92, frit can drop vertically into any other type of quenching device, mold, or medium that may be judged practical.

In the raising and lowering of the door section DS, there must be some freedom of movement of the door proper 75 away from the front face 42 of the U-shaped frame 30 in order to prevent excessive friction or even lsticking between the abutting surfaces. At the same time, when the door section is in adjusted position, it must be held snug against the frame 30 so that there are no ex* cessively large cracks therebetween into which the molten frit might ow. The means for accomplishing these objects include a plurality of clamping devices indicated generally by the reference numeral 95. Each of these clamping devices 95 comprises a U-shaped strap 96. welded or otherwise secured to a pair of the channel beams 16, 16 or 17, 17, and having outwardly turned ears 97. A pin 98 extends between each pair of ears 97 and is secured therein to serve as a fulcrum for a clamping lever 99. The inner end of each clamping lever 99 has rearwardlyetxending plate, or flange 100 for movement into contact with a door section frame 57 or 58. The other, or outer, end of each lever 99 is provided with a pressure applying threaded member 101, which may be threaded against an abutment provided by a channel section 102. The channel sections 102 (Fig. 3) are welded, as at 104 tothe outturned flanges of a channel beam 16 or 17 so as to lie in back of the pressure applying threaded members 101.

When it is desired to raise or lower the door section DS, the pressure applying threaded members 101 are turned back so as to release the pressure of the inturned lian-ges 100 against the door frames 57 and 58. There need be only a complete release of any pressure to permit relative sliding movement of the door section between the ends of the inturned anges 100 and said frames 57 and 58 and between said frames and the front wall 42 of the U-shaped frame 30. A transverse round bar 105, secured at its ends to the inner surfaces of the innermost channel members 16 and 17, serves as an upper guiding surface against which the rear surfaces of the frames 57 and 58 may bear (Fig. 3) or in contact with which said frames may slide during movement of the door section.

From the foregoing description, it will be apparent that there has been provided a water-cooled, vertically adjustable door section enabling the operator to control the depth of the pool P of molten frit on the floor 51. Such an arrangement not only facilitates the draining of the smelter but also the control of the rate of ow of discharge, aids in eliminating poorly quenched material and allows a better clean-out of the smelter when changing production. The pool type of smelting makes possible an improvement in the quality of the frit in that it minimizes iluctuations in various properties and characteristics of the frit, such as color, opacity, hardness and workability. Some materials, because of inherent qualities, cannot be made on a pool type of smelter unless the smelter is equipped with an adjustable water-cooled door section such as herein described. In addition, my invention results in a longer life for the refractory on the bottom or hearth of the smelter and in some cases increases over-all production.

It will be understood that modilications and variations may be etfected without departing from the scope of the novel concepts of the present invention.

I claim as my invention:

In a smelter for molten material, a wall having a discharge opening, a U-shaped water-cooled frame in said opening, a Water-cooled door section having a discharge spout, means guiding said section for vertical movement, means for raising and lowering said section, means for tightly holding said section against said frame in adjusted position and a water sluiced swivelly mounted [spout carried by said door section for directing the ow of material from said discharge spout.

References Cited in the lile of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 287,646 Durfee et al Oct. 30, 1883 1,126,080 Quigley Ian. 26, 1915 1,944,082' Hegel Jan. 16, 1934 FOREIGN PATENTS 216,303 Germany Nov. 26, 1909 

